Jessie Royer shares her winning dinner from the Lakefront Hotel with fellow competitors on March 13, for being first to arrive in Ruby.

Iditarod musher Jessie Royer received the Bristol Bay Native Corporation Fish First Award as the first to reach the Kaltag checkpoint in the 2020 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

Royer arrived in Kaltag at approximately 3:18 p.m. on Saturday, March 14, with 13 dogs. BBNC will present her with the 2020 Fish First Award at the Iditarod Awards Banquet which will be held at a later date. The award consists of 25 pounds of fresh Bristol Bay salmon filets, $2,000, and a wood burned art piece by BBNC shareholder artist Apayuq Moore.

Jessie Royer accepts the Bristol Bay Native Corporation Fish First award in Kaltag March 14, 2020.

“Bristol Bay Native Corporation is excited to once again present an award that supports our Fish First value,” said Jason Metrokin, BBNC President and Chief Executive Officer. “Both dog mushing and fishing are long standing traditions in Bristol Bay. We congratulate Jessie Royer on winning the 2020 Fish First Award.”

Bristol Bay is home to the world’s largest wild sockeye salmon fishery. BBNC has endorsed a Fish First priority for land and resource management in Bristol Bay. In all land management and resource development decisions, adequate protections for fish and fish habitat will always be a priority.